Title: Relationship Material

Author: Jenya Keefe

Genre: Romance, LGBTQIA+, Contemporary

Trigger Warning: Prostitution, Sexual assault, murder, violence, torture, drug use.

Summary: 

It’s not always possible to meet in the middle.

Registered nurse Evan Doyle doesn’t consider himself fit for more than occasional hookups. He has a good life, but the emotional aftermath of a horrific crime makes him feel too damaged to date. So when his sister’s hot bestie, Malcolm Umbertini, comes on to him, he turns him down flat. Mal is Relationship Material: the kind who thinks in the long term. What would Evan do with a man like that?

As a prosecuting attorney, Mal’s learned how to read people, and he knows there’s more to Evan than meets the eye. Mal has faced his own hardships since his family kicked him out as a teen, and he respects Evan’s courage and emotional resilience. More than that, he wants Evan—in his bed and in his life. But can he weather another rejection?

Both wary, they agree to a no-strings fling. Mal knows that Evan wants things to stay casual, but he’s falling in love a little more with each encounter. With health, happiness, and bruised hearts on the line, Mal and Evan must risk everything for love.

This book deals with a lot of hard topics, which found me clutching my blanket in hand, or covering my mouth in horror. There are some topics close to me, which I did not prepare myself for.

This book illustrates what happens in a way that does not make it gratuitous for the sake of being so. That being said, it could still be hard for some people to read.

It did however hook me, with one playful conversation about which Avenger is the best. I also have a soft spot for Bucky Barnes (who is not a villain.)

I also have a softness for characters who appear to be assholes but aren’t, so Mal drew me right in as well. And I found myself alternately wanting to cuddle Evan and take him to the nearest doctor. I liked reading about someone wrestling with anxiety and PTSD in a way that felt real and familiar to me.

This book is one I would read again, with more emotional preparation.

Received a  free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review